Elasticity refers to the characteristic that allows cloud resources to be dynamically allocated or de-allocated as demand changes. This flexibility aids businesses in managing varying workloads efficiently without the need for significant capital expenditures on physical infrastructure. Scalability is related, but it primarily deals with the capacity to increase resources, and does not necessarily imply the dynamic aspect that is inherent to elasticity. Worldwide distribution relates to the global reach and presence of cloud services, while shared responsibility addresses the division of security and compliance duties between the cloud provider and the customer; both are key aspects of cloud offerings, but they are not synonymous with the dynamic resource matching that elasticity provides.